Mikaeans
|homeworld=Xyon |class=Sentient |diet=Omnivore |languages=Mikaean |height=173.7–195.3 cm (5'7"–6'4") |weight=56.2–98.8 kg (124–218 lbs) |skin=Dark brown |hair=Black |eyes=Grey |distinctions=*Metallic skeletal system *Limited shared consciousness *High reproductive rate |subspecies= |psionic=''To be determined'' |lifespan=246.3 years (average) *253.9 years (male) *238.7 years (female) |affiliation=Xyon Directorate |notable= |othernames= }}The Mikaeans (Mikaean: ; : Filii odium) are a near-human species native to the planet of Xyon in the Ianthina system, also known as Fomalhaut, located some twelve-five light years from Earth. They are the creations of human scientist, Mikael O'Neill, who sought to carve out a society built in his image and with his ideologies, while bearing several traits which would make them superior to members of his own species. Living up their father's wishes, the Mikaeans built a civilization, which two and a half thousand years, spanned the entire solar system. The Mikaeans have only recently began colonizing other solar systems, but their starship and interstellar travel technologies have been rather advanced for centuries. Since the time of their creation more than two thousand years ago, the Mikaeans have built a thriving interstellar society spanning dozens of planets throughout the . Numbering more than fifteen billion, the Mikaeans are the most populous species in the region. In fact, they are the only species aside from humanity, located within the small region of space. The Mikaeans adhere strictly to the ideals known as dirigism, a socio-political ideology created by their father, and are ruled by an equally strict totalitarian government known as the Xyon Directorate, and controlled by the Mikaean Dirigist Party, which has maintained a iron grip on political power for centuries. Etymology The Mikaeans are named after Mikael O'Neill, the man who created the species back on Earth. All Mikaeans bare his genetic information, due to the attempts by O'Neill to create a society that literally resembled himself and his ideals. At the time of their creations, the Mikaeans had no name for themselves, and simply referred to themselves as humans. However, when the biological, psychological, and ideological differences of the species became evermore apparent, and the identity of their creator public, baseline humans simply began referring to their new counterparts as Mikaeans. It wasn't long until the Mikaeans officially adopted the name for themselves, and soon too began referring for themselves as Mikaeans. Many agreed that the name was fitting, given that they were biological offspring of O'Neill, and should have been using the name to identify themselves well before it was attributed to them by humanity. Biology and appearance Physiology The Mikaeans are a humanoid species not unlike their distant human relatives in terms of physical appearance and internal biology. Mikaeans possess dark brown skin and black hair, and all Mikaeans share the same grey iris color with surrounding black sclera. Mikaeans stand 184.5 cm (6') and weight 77.5 kg (170.8 lbs) on average, though it can vary between 173.7 cm (5'7") to 195.3 cm (6'4") and 56.2 kg (124 lbs) to 98.8 kg (218 lbs) depending on sex and diet. Regardless, males and females are generally equal in terms of height and weight. Female Mikaeans possess several purely cosmetic features on their bodies, such as their lips which are coated in an oily lipstick-like substance, and their nails which darken to a sheen jet black coating as they mature. Mikaean females also produce a highly toxic black, ink-like substance from their eyes similar to tears, but which continuously run from their eyes throughout their lifetimes. Interestingly, male Mikaeans do not produce these toxic black tears, and lack the ability to cry in general. The tears in female Mikaeans also appears to be a defensive mechanism as well, increasing in volume and toxic potency when they are in danger. Mikaean blood is black in color, with the oxygen-binding protein in their blood known as hemombranin, being responsible for this unique property. Hemombranin can carry considerably more oxygen than hemoglobin, lending the Mikaeans their great stamina and endurance. A notable feature of this protein is the effect it has on Mikaean muscles. With a higher level of oxygen provided to their muscles, the Mikaean muscular system is on average three to four times stronger than the human muscular system. Their muscles are also considerably denser as well, meaning that certain blows do not harm Mikaeans as much as they would humans. Mikaeans can run faster and longer than humans as well, and possess a higher level of flexibility and agility. To deal with the cooler winters on the Mikaean homeworld of Xyon, Mikaean blood doubles as something of an anti-freeze, keeping the blood and other bodily fluids from freezing during the most frigid periods of the winter months, and helping the Mikaeans to survive in a range of cold and sweltering environments. The internal body temperature of the average Mikaean is about 86ºF (30ºC), heavily regulated by the higher amount of oxygen in their bodies and the anti-freeze they naturally produce. As a species, the Mikaeans are classified as a psychrophile and radioresistant species, able to withstand the lethal effects of the cold and radiation. Mikaeans mature quickly, with the a Mikaean individual deemed to be physically mature at age thirteen, the equivalent of a 21-year old human. A Mikaean will remain at that peak physical and mental condition for the reminder of their lives. Mikaeans are long-lived, living on average for about 246.3 years, with females living up to 238.7 years of age and males living even longer to see 253.9 years of age. Mikaeans are a predominately female species, with males making up just five percent of the total population. Females have a biological imperative to protect the men in their species, and thus work in many hostile occupations that they have barred off to men, thereby decreasing their life expectancy considerably. As children, Mikaeans mature mentally very quickly, and can grasp information a human of the equivalent age would not. Likewise, Mikaeans thus deem their children to be adults in all but name long before the reach physical maturity. The Mikaeans digestive system is effective in breaking down most types of matter, digesting all kinds of materials that others would have struggled to even bother as viewing as a source of food. Their saliva is incredibly effective at killing bacteria and toxins, and is acidic enough to weaken the connective bonds within their food. The Mikaeans possess a highly efficient waste removal system, with all waste expelled from their body in liquid form, as a clear gray liquid with a odor similar to chlorine. They have no large intestines, though their small intestines are instead connected to their bladders, which obliterate solid waste and refine them into liquids. So powerful are the chemicals used to refine the waste into liquid matter, that the liquid waste itself is deemed acidic and dangerous by Mikaeans. Additionally, the Mikaeans have a clean metabolism, meaning that obesity is impossible within the species. A Mikaean can eat as much as they want, though they will become lethargic as their body attempts to cope with the extra materials they have forced into their digestive tract. It should be noted that male Mikaeans like a rectal opening, while the one females have isn't connected or associated with the digestive tract, and serves instead as a secondary sexual organ. The Mikaean skeletal system is dense and metallic in nature, with a black metallic coating and a strong honeycomb-like interior structure, increasing the strength and endurance of the Mikaeans bones to steel-like levels with only a fracture of the weight and mass. Mikaeans can survive falls from great heights or blows with little physical truama, and recover from the even within a generally short period of time. Mikaean teeth are also coated in the same metallic substance, and notably possess large upper and lower canines. Their teeth are also sharp and serrated, and appear to be self-sharpening. All Mikaeans possess a long, prehensile tongue, about thirty centimeters in length, which is black in color and strong enough to firmly grip objects with, and an opening in the tip that can be used to drink liquids with. The Mikaean immunity system is equally robust, with an organ known as the tuera, responsible for producing millions of undifferentiated stem cells which can heal damaged organs, tissue, and even body parts. However, the tuera cannot heal itself, and damage to the organ can result in a Mikaean losing the ability to regenerate organs and body parts. Aggressive viruses are still dangerous and even lethal to the Mikaeans, and though the immune system they possess is strong enough to lessen the lasting impact of the virus, proper medical treatment is still required from a hospital. Reproduction Mikaeans reproduce in a radically different manner than their human precursors. Unlike humanity, female Mikaeans lack ovaries and have no vital biological role within the reproductive cycle of the Mikaeans. Mikaeans instead produce offspring via patrilineal oviparity, in which the father produces and fertilizes the eggs asexually. This process take place via the paragus and canubula, two organs created by O'Neill to allow for asexual reproduction by the Mikaeans. The paragus takes sperm from the testicles and converts them first into undifferentiated stem cells and then into egg cells. Another sperm is then used to fertilize the egg cell during the process, before the egg cell is transferred to the canubula for storage. The eggs can be stored there indefinitely, remaining viable even years after their creation in the paragus. The canubula stores the eggs until the father wishes to have a child, at which point the father can consciously select how many eggs he wishes to eject from his body. Since the eggs are already fertilized within the body, they are kept dormant within the canubula via exposure to the Mikaean hormone known as xanogene, which suppresses the growth of the eggs until they leave the body. The eggs can grow in any environment, but the morality rate of the offspring will increase depending on the harshness of the location they are left in. Recommended locations for the growth of eggs include warm bodies of mineral-rich water, or moist surfaces in humid regions. However, because eggs are much more susceptible to harm and damage, with the morality rate for the eggs skyrocketing due to exposure to the elements and predators. Many fathers have thus taken to acquiring the services of their female counterparts to protect their children by carrying the eggs in their wombs until the eggs are large enough to be left in open locations. The process takes place during sexual intercourse, in which the father passes on up to twelve eggs to the woman, who will carry the eggs as they grow for the next two or three weeks. At the end of this period, the woman's body will begin to force the eggs from her body, which are now better prepared for survival in the outside world. The eggs will continue to grow for the next five months until the offspring hatches from them. The eggs themselves are less than one millimeter in diameter at the point of their creation in the paragus, and will grow to the size of more than 76.2 centimeters. The eggs are glossy embryonic sacs which are black in color, and which expand until the child tears its way out of the egg. In spite of the fact that Mikaeans hatch from eggs, the newly born Mikaeans offspring are referred to as newborns rather than hatchlings. Mikaeans who were born via a female laying their eggs on behalf of their father are known as womb-born, and those born through their fathers alone inside of purpose-built housing for eggs are known as creche-born. There is considerable social stigma attached to creche-born Mikaeans by their womb-born relatives. Those who were womb-born are considered superior given that their father sought to protect them and have a direct hand in their upbringing, while creche-born Mikaeans were instead born to serve as workers, soldiers, or fill any roles required of them by their society. Thus, creche-born Mikaeans are considered to be expendable assets of their people by womb-born Mikaeans. Psychology History Origins and creation Ancient history Medieval history Industrial era Discovery of FTL travel Society and culture Caste system The Mikaeans are organized into a strict caste system known as the Federal Strata System, which is organized in such a manner that all Mikaeans born throughout the Directorate are managed in accordance with their assigned, or in the case of womb-born individuals, selected caste. There are six castes, these are the bureaucrats, intelligentsia, soldiery, artisans, and laborers. Members of the creche-born population are assigned to each caste according to the current needs of the species, while womb-born Mikaeans may serve in the caste of their choice following a series of stringent exams to determine whether they are qualified for the position they are applying for. Creche-born Mikaeans are bound to their caste for life, and only have the potential possibility of rising within the ranks of their caste if they have proven themselves capable of handling the responsibilities of that rank effectively and efficiently. The majority of Mikaeans are purposefully conceived with a sole purpose in life, and never leave their position as a result. All children born into a household creche are surveyed extensively by the intelligentsia staff assigned to the creche the children are located at. The scientists within the intelligentsia caste are responsible for logging all possible information on the children they are to look after, and then preparing reports that will govern to a large extent what sub-caste within the child's caste they will be assigned too. As time progresses, the child will come to fit the criteria of the sub-caste they have been assigned to as the creche scientists mold the child's growth patterns to the needs of their caste. If the soldiery need more pilots, then the scientists will ensure that the children are given superior spacial awareness and quick decision makers, vital traits for combat pilots. If the bureaucrat caste needs more members, then Mikaeans assigned to that caste in the creche will be modified to ensure that they possess the skills required in leaders and politicians. Religion Though the Mikaeans don't look like it, they are in fact, a highly religious species with a strong belief in a divine entity. Mikael, unlike the majority of his scientific colleagues, had known very well the fact that humanity was an innately spiritual species, and that no matter how hard atheist elements with the race had tried to weaken or outright destroy religion, it always made a comeback, and always had a strong following. Rather than fight human nature, Mikael decided to embrace it fully, and pass those leanings down to the Mikaeans. A deeply religious man himself, Mikael succeeded in ingraining into the Mikaeans those strong spiritual and religious traits. However, he did not pass on his own religious beliefs to his children, instead wishing for them to find their own way as a spiritual people, and find the religious path that best suited them and their needs. What he didn't foresee was that he would become the center of new Mikaean religion. The Mikaeans idolization of the family unit extends to their creator Mikael, whom they rightly refer to as "Father of the Mikaeans". While the some of Mikaeans, generally the patriarchs, regard their father as a simple mortal man who created them through scientific means, the majority of Mikaeans, ranging from womb-born to creche-born Mikaeans, consider Mikael a newborn god who had been guided by the superior Unknown Creator, the unknown creator of the universe, to create their species. A cult of personality came to surround the man, with images of him found in every residence, government building, business center, and place of worship. Mikaeans who go into combat routinely place photos and drawings of their father in their pockets, helmets, shoes, and mouths, and many more Mikaeans keep shrines devoted to him in their homes and dormitories. Voidships all possess a shrine onboard, located in the most secure part of the ship. Family and marriage Family is the most important thing to a Mikaean outside of their service to the state. All Mikaeans are the biological offspring of their creator, and share his traits and personality as well as all of his genetic information. Since the Mikaeans reproduce in a manner that results in millions of Mikaeans being born to a single parent at a time, as well as their limited form of shared consciousness, the Mikaeans regard each other as literal brothers and sisters regardless of who their father is. Many Mikaeans refer to their species as the "Children of Mikael" or "the Family", and refer to each other as "brother" or "sister", with the exception of elder men with children whom they always refer to as "father". The strict patriarchal political system which governs their society has not changed since their creation, and the Mikaeans are extremely protective of their family members to the point of personal sacrifice. Morals and taboos Category:Mikaeans Category:Species Category:Copyright